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Aerospace/Military/HS

Pronghorn Receives R&D Grant

November 3, 2009

The company has been awarded funds by the U.S. Navy to develop next-generation oxidant sensors for use with advanced shipboard desalination systems.


LARAMIE, WY /BUSINESS WIRE/ -- Pronghorn Technologies LLC has received a $70,000 grant from the U.S. Navy to research and develop a new generation of total residual oxidant (TRO) sensors for use with advanced shipboard desalination systems. The compact in-stream detector will be capable of continuously detecting and reporting residual oxidant levels in hypochlorite-enhanced seawater streams, used to kill marine organisms. Laramie, Wyoming–based Pronghorn is a spin-off from ADA Technologies Inc. (ADA), headquartered in Denver, CO.

Problems with current state-of-the-art TRO detectors include an inability to provide real-time measurements, large-size, logistical challenges, and labor-intensive maintenance.

"Pronghorn's next-generation oxidant sensor will be compact, rapid, reliable, and very simple to operate," said Kent D. Henry, PhD., Pronghorn President and CEO. "The TRO sensor provides a direct measurement of the oxidant species in the marine environment, bypassing unstable, gas-porous membranes found in prior aqueous chlorine measurement sensors. This direct measurement without membranes makes the sensor more accurate and stable over its usable life, reducing the overall cost of ownership."

Hypochlorite (an oxidant in household bleach that makes it an effective disinfectant) is harmful to the environment if released in large concentrations. Real-time feedback is needed to ensure hypochlorite levels fall within a narrow range that is effective, yet harmless, when discharged to the surrounding environment.

ADA has received $1.05 million in grant monies for oxidant sensor monitor R&D since 2005.

About Pronghorn
Pronghorn Technologies LLC is based in the Wyoming Technology Business Center on the University of Wyoming campus, Laramie. The company was created by ADA Technologies in 2008 to adapt ADA's oxidant sensor technology for use by industrial and consumer markets. For more information, please call 307-766-9511.

About ADA
ADA Technologies Inc. is a research, development, and commercialization company that specializes in creating and converting innovative technologies to commercial successes. The firm is headquartered in Littleton, CO, with offices on the University of Wyoming campus in Laramie and the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center, Blacksburg, VA. ADA has received more than 130 research grants, totaling more than $40 million. ADA has received numerous honors, including the 2006 Tibbetts Award; 2006, 2007, and 2008 Colorado Technology Fast 50; 2006 and 2007 Best Companies to Work For in Colorado; and Colorado's Top Technology Company 2005. For more information, please call 303-792-5615.






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